A Lover's Complaint
by heavy.sighs.and.sad.goodbyes
Summary: He hadn't loved her correctly, and he made promises he couldn't keep. Nate didn't roll that way. NateMitchie.


_**A Lover's Complaint**_

Summary: He hadn't loved her correctly, and he made promises he couldn't keep. Nate didn't roll that way. NatexMitchie.

* * *

Mitchie stared at the television in anger, a few tears streaming down her face. Tears of anger of course. She knew crying over Shane was a waste of her time and tears, but no matter how many times she told herself that, she still didn't believe it.

They had broken up not very long ago—through a text message. He had said that "things just weren't working out as he thought they would" and that "he was sorry." She had been forgiving, as usual, and had let it go. But now her anger hit a flare. Because he hadn't broken up with her to help them out. He had done it to help _himself_ out.

As Mitchie stared at the photo of Shane Gray and Tess Tyler, arms around each other, holding the other lovingly, their lips crushed against each others, she felt her anger hit an all-time high. More tears streamed down her face, now cascading down her face as fast as a fresh-water stream. Her cheeks were red in anger, giving her a constipated look. Her fists were a yellow-white they were clenched so hard. Her toes curled and pulled at the carpet underneath her feet.

And then she let it all out.

It came out in a loud, ear-piercing scream that people two blocks away could hear. It lasted a good minute, too. She had the lungs of a singer, apparently. After letting that out, she looked at the picture helplessly and her head fell into her hands. She let it all out. She cried and really cried. Tears of pain, not the silly excuse about tears of anger. She cried.

Her mother ran in after hearing her daughter scream. "What happened?! What's wrong?!"

Mitchie dried a few tears and rewound the show a little and paused it. She started crying again, even harder this time. It was hard to look at; hard to think that he had dropped her for that messed-up slut.

Mitchie felt her mothers hands on her shoulders and she leaned into Connie, wishing that all of it would go away.

"Shh, honey it's okay. Everything is going to be just fine without Shane. I say who needs him," she told her daughter, trying to lighten the mood. When it didn't work, she held Mitchie closer. "I'm so sorry it had to end like that, sweetheart. You don't deserve this after everything you did for him. You helped him become a better person, you didn't complain about the distance in your relationship, you did everything right. It was him that didn't."

Connie paused before going on. "I was dating someone before your father who was much like Shane. He was arrogant and selfish and I thought I could change him for good," Connie told her only daughter. Mitchie looked up at her mom with a tear-streaked face.

"What happened?" Mitchie prompted. Her mother smiled and shook her head slightly before pulling Mitchie into a hug again.

"He broke my heart in two and kept half for himself as a reminder of what he did because it made him feel good. I never thought I'd find it again, until I met your dad," Connie mumbled into Mitchie's hair.

"You know, a very good friend of mine once told me that love is giving someone the chance to destroy you and trusting them not to. I always wondered what she meant until it happened to me. It doesn't matter who you're with, as long as they make you happy, and at first that was the case with Shane. But even I could see that, after a while, neither of you were enjoying the others company very much. Just keep that in mind as you keep crying over what he did. Maybe he wasn't so selfish. Maybe he did it to help you out too." With that, her mother got up and left. Mitchie looked on after her. She looked over at her phone. Sierra had left her a voice message, as had Caitlyn. Peggy and Ella sent her texts. She knew what all of them were about. Shane. Just like everything else was.

She sighed and stood up. She didn't feel like writing a song right now. Instead she walked up to her room and looked at all the pictures with smiles as she saw all the happy times they had. Then she came across her favorite picture of her. But it wasn't with Shane. It was with Nate. She had her arms wrapped securely around Nate's shoulders as she leaned her head against his mass of soft curls. His hands were on her arms, holding them in place as if he didn't want to let go. They both smiled gently. If it wasn't all over the place that Mitchie and Shane were together, you would think that Nate and Mitchie were a couple.

Her smile grew and she chuckled. The chuckle grew to a soft giggle. Then it grew to a laugh. And it got larger. And larger. She bent over and clutched her stomach. These were her favorite moments. The moments when she could laugh over an island of good times amongst an ocean of bad. Still, that was Mitchie.

Once the laughter died down, the smile remained on her face. She smiled, nodded at the picture and grabbed her jacket. With that, she walked out into the cold, fresh, crisp autumn air.

As she stepped out, she took in a deep breath. She felt a pang in her chest. Even though she had laughed it off, that didn't really lighten the load at all. It only made things temporarily easier. She quickly brushed away a few stray tears that had pushed themselves out from underneath her eyelids. She hated crying over something so stupid.

But it's the stupid things that can drive you crazy.

* * *

Nate stared at the scene in front of him in horror. He couldn't believe this.

Shane had Tess pinned against the wall, with her airbrushed tan legs wrapped around his waist as he kissed vigorously at her neck. She moaned and gasped and whimpered. Nate never knew that Shane was such a womanizer. But this wasn't just womanizing. This was straight-out barbaric. Nate just kept watching as he leaned against the corner of the wall.

Finally there came a cease-fire with Shane saying he had an interview to get to. Nate looked down at his watch. Sure enough, Shane really knew how to time things just right so that the spotlight was on him again.

Tess giggled and nodded before pulling him in for another sloppy kiss. Shane obliged, chuckling into her mouth as he wrapped one arm around her waist and he held the other out to catch them before they fell into the wall. Tess giggled as well. Nate tried not to puke.

Finally they stopped and Shane actually left. Tess fixed her shirt and walked out as well.

But the image of Tess and Shane was forever imprinted in Nate's innocent mind.

* * *

Nate was childish enough to think that it would stop there. But it didn't. Oh no. It was far from over. Especially what Nate started to see after.

As time wore on, things got much more heated to the point of clothes being ripped to shreds and thrown about in an ungodly manner. Nate winced as he heard Tess groan much louder than she had last time with Shane doing the same in the background.

Nate walked away before it went much farther. He didn't know if he wanted to hear more, but he highly doubted it.

* * *

Still it wasn't Nate's fault when he walked in on a full-on sex session. They didn't see him, as they were too busy screaming each others' names to notice, but Nate couldn't believe what Shane was doing.

He left before he could see too much, and quickly made a plan.

That night, at an awards ceremony, he willingly stood next to Shane for photos, but he had something else in mind. He clenched his jaw as Shane answered a question about his recent break-up with Mitchie Torres. He made it sound as if he regretted breaking up with her, but Nate knew better.

As they stepped forward to accept their award for best music video of the year, Shane started thanking everybody. As he was halfway through the speech, just as he thanked Tess for all her "support of his music", Nate swung his fist at Shane.

And the world saw it.

He looked at Shane lying there on the ground as Jason bended over to help him with a sense of satisfaction. He stepped around Shane and up to the microphone.

"Hello people of the world. I know that you all wonder why I did that, and I don't blame you. You all really wonder what happened to Mitchie Torres? She was taken off Shane's People-to-Love List because she wouldn't give him the one thing he wanted. She wouldn't have sex with him." A gasp rose from the crowd. Nate laughed evilly. "I know, right? Well, I have no wish to work with Shane anymore after I saw him cheat somebody like that with someone like Tess Tyler. I mean, he could at least choose somebody with a bit more class, right?" The crowd started laughing. Nate smiled at them. "So from here on out, I will not be apart of Connect Three. I'm going to have a solo career with songs that can't be vetoed off the album by Shane because they don't do any good for his image. They're going to be my own songs. Maybe I'll even have a few duets with Mitchie. Thank you and good night."

People cheered for him as he jumped off the stage and walked down the aisle. The security guards quickly held back the mobs that tried to get to Nate. He waved and smiled at them before stepping out of the doors and getting into the helicopter that awaited to take him to his special place.

* * *

Mitchie and her parents stared at the TV set in shock. Nate had just walked out a few minutes ago. Now it showed Tess running up the stairs to help Shane. Shane looked angry as he had his hand covering his nose. A stream of blood poured out from underneath it.

Mitchie turned to her dad as she heard a sound come from him. He held a hand in front of his face, but she could tell that he had been laughing. He had never really liked Shane. She smiled at him and her mother. They all started laughing. They replayed the punch and the speech over and over again until they thought their stomachs would explode if they laughed anymore.

They all went to bed, but Mitchie was awoken in the middle of the night by the sound of a tapping on her window.

She got up tiredly and looked out her window. She opened it and looked down. Nate stood there, smiling with a handful of rocks in his palm. Mitchie grinned and shook her head.

"Hey Romeo. What's shakin'?" she asked him, suppressing a giggle. He grinned at her before clearing his throat.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long hair. I have no way to get up there, but I would love to see you."

Mitchie's smile faded as she realized he was completely serious but the smile quickly returned.

"My Prince Charming, I am sorry, but my hair is not nearly long enough. I do not deserve to have you tugging on my peasant locks of boring brown hair, anyhow. Wouldn't you much rather be with that blonde girl that your fine knight Shane was with earlier, or is she not enough of a skank to suit you?" Mitchie grinned as he threw his head back in laughter.

"Not quite. Knight Shane can keep her if he wishes. I have my eye on something much more special, a true prize that I hope I can win, if you let me, that is?"

Mitchie was surprised what a romance he was. She shook her head.

"What prize might you be implying, my Prince?" she asked, wondering how he would respond to that.

"Knight Shane gave up his prize, and I want it with a fair fight. I'm not much of a jouster myself, but I'm sure my voice is greater than his by far, beloved."

Mitchie stared at him for a moment. His eyes were completely serious and non-joking. She nodded before turning away from the window and dashing down the stairs and out the front door. She unlocked it and turned the knob before cautiously stepping out.

Nate was nowhere to be seen. She looked around before quietly shutting the door. She crossed her arms across her chest in attempt to keep warm, with it not doing much. She stepped out into the middle of the yard. She felt someone wrap their arms around her from behind, but she didn't turn. She didn't turn because she knew exactly who those arms belonged to.

Nate and Mitchie had always referred to each other as Rapunzel and Prince Charming and beloved and dearest. It was just their thing. At times Mitchie knew that Shane got jealous of them, but she didn't comfort him because she didn't pity him. It was just a joke between her and Nate. Was Shane so self-centered that he wouldn't even let her have jokes that he wasn't in on?

It had always been a joke, but it wasn't right now as Nate held Mitchie just about as close to him as she could get. It left her slightly light-headed, but she liked the feeling more than anything else in the world. She shook slightly.

"Are you cold?" Nate whispered into her ear, his warm breath making her smile.

"Not really. I'm fine." Mitchie felt a gust of wind wrap itself around her as he untangled his arms from her waist. She let out a silent breath that she hadn't known she'd been holding.

Nate chuckled softly as he draped his jacket over her shoulders. She looked down at it curiously. He lifted her chin up with his fingers so she looked into his deep brown eyes.

They stood like that for awhile, and Mitchie felt comfortable in the worn-out leather jacket that was now around her.

"I'm still waiting for my fair shot. Do I get to try, or should I walk away with some dignity?" Nate asked her, sadness evident in his voice. He let go of her chin and looked away while taking a step back. Mitchie covered the space between them and wrapped an arm around his neck so he looked down at her expectant face. She shook her head.

"You don't have to get your shot. You've already got the prize if you're sure that you want it. You were always the one with the prize, believe it or not, but Knight Shane stole it while you left it unattended," she told him matter-of-factly. He smiled down at her softly before covering the gap between their faces.

When he disconnected their lips, he rested his forehead against hers.

"That sounds like something Knight Shane would do," Nate told her. She laughed and nodded before pecking his lips softly. He smiled that lopsided grin at her before pulling her towards the door of her house.

He opened the door for her and let her walk in first. Mitchie started walking up the stairs but turned around when she didn't hear footsteps coming behind her. She saw that Nate was still standing outside, the door wide open, looking somewhat skeptical. Mitchie walked back over to him and placed her hand gently on his arm.

"What's wrong?" she asked him, confused. Hadn't they just had a wonderful moment, or had it just been a bit of fun?

"Nothing's wrong. It's just one, you never truly invited me in and two, I don't think your parents will be very happy if they see me in your room with you."

Mitchie shook her head and wrapped her arms around his waist, looking up at him. "My parents love you, at least a lot more than they loved Shane. And, trust me, that goes a long way. They laughed when you punched him in the nose."

Nate's eyes widened. "Really?"

Mitchie giggled and nodded before pecking at his lips. Then she backed away and pulled at his arm. "Come on," she pouted. "My parents won't care as long as we're not on top of each other naked."

Nate blushed a deep red at the thought. Not because he didn't want to, but because they hadn't even officially started going out yet. He hadn't even _asked_ her out yet. He took one look at her face and gave up. She smiled before dragging him up the stairs and into her room.

She shushed him as he stepped on a squeaky stair. He made a face at her and nodded up the stairs, telling her to keep walking.

As they reached the top of the stairs, Mitchie smiled at him and wrapped her arms around his waist. He smiled and kissed her again lightly, the tingly feeling still there. She giggled.

Just then they saw a light stream into the hallway as the bathroom door opened and Mitchie's dad stepped out. They stood absolutely still. But the deer-in-the-headlights look appeared on their faces as he turned to go down the stairs. He bumped into them without seeing them, his eyes still getting used to the dark, and let out a surprised holler. Mitchie and Nate jumped as he did.

Steve held a hand to his heart as he tried to get his breathing under control. "Mitchie, honey, take it easy on your old man. Please, don't do that again."

Mitchie nodded, still scared to pieces.

Steve turned to continue walking down the stairs but stopped. "Oh. Hello Nate. Wonderful to see you again, son." He clapped a hand on Nate's shoulder. Nate nodded, loosening up a little.

"You too, sir. Always a pleasure," Nate told him sincerely, his voice still not much louder than a whisper. He still realized that Connie was asleep just down the hallway. Steve laughed softly.

"Please. Call me Steve." He turned to his only daughter and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight, honey."

Mitchie smiled at her father. "You too, dad."

Steve continued down the stairs as Nate and Mitchie stared after him. Mitchie hugged Nate again.

"There. You have my parents' permission to be here. Do you feel better now?" she asked him teasingly.

Nate grinned. "I only have your dad's permission."

Mitchie stared at him in disbelief. "What, do you want me to wake up my mom so we can get her okay on you being here?"

Nate shook his head. "No. We'll just find out at breakfast."

Mitchie nodded before walking backwards to her bedroom, her eyes on Nate's the whole time, not stumbling once. Nate gulped.

"You know, Mitch, that makes me a little uncomfortable when you do that." He stared behind her as she walked through the doorway to her room and towards her bed before sitting on it gracefully, pulling him on after her.

"Don't worry. I won't do anything to you. Tonight at least," she told him coyly as she pressed her back against his chest and snuggled under the covers, bringing him with her. Nate shuddered at the thought.

"Okay, okay, that's enough." He kissed the top of her head. "Go to sleep. I'll still be here in the morning."

"You promise?" Mitchie asked as she turned her head to look back at him, her eyes gleaming in the moonlight which streamed in through the window. He beamed at her.

"Of course. When I make a promise, I intend to keep it," he told her softly as he kissed her forehead.

"Okay." Mitchie laid her head down on the pillow. "Thank you, Nate."

"Anything for you, Mitchie. Anything for you."

_A/N: Okay. I have been writing this story for god know's how long now. Months probably. I've been working on many other's also. I'm glad I finally finished this one. More posts will come soon. I have a hard-drive full of half-finished stories!_


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